A Key to Critical Thinking
Habits of the Mind
What are habits of the mind?
A habit is a "a recurrent, often unconscious pattern of behavior that is acquired through
frequent repetition, an established disposition of the mind or character" (American
Heritage® Dictionary, 2000, habit, 1a.,b). Habits are learned very early and assist us in
managing both routine and complex activities. Initially, learning these behaviors are
difficult and require attention, knowledge, repetition, and practice. Habits may imply
productive or positive actions or negative and detrimental behaviors. A "habit of the
mind" suggests a practiced way or manner in which we use or apply our thinking.
Disposition may be defined as “a habitual inclination, a tendency” (American Heritage®
Dictionary, 2000, disposition, 2a). It can also be viewed as the motivation for an action or
behavior, a particular character trait or an attitude. A critical thinking disposition suggests
a mind frame or inclination to use critical thinking.
Spirit can be defined as “an inclination or tendency, mood or emotional state” (American
Heritage® Dictionary, 2000, spirit, 7a). Spirits can denote a disposition, affect or frame
of mind, i.e. in high or low spirits. A critical spirit suggests a positive affect that
transcends normal thinking and can assist us in transforming our thinking. It has been
described in the APA study as "a probing inquisitiveness, a keeness of mind, a zealous
dedication to reason, and a hunger or eagerness for reliable information" (Facione, 1990,
p.13).
Critical thinking dispositions or habits of the mind include being self-confident in own
reasoning abilities, inquisitive, honest and upright, alert to context, open and fair-minded,
analytical and insightful, logical and intuitive, reflective and self-corrective, sensitive to
diversity (Alfero-LeFevre, 2004). Additional traits include a willingness to take a
position and defend it, showing creativity, flexibility, perseverance, reflection, and
maturity in judgments, and being truth-seeking, systematic, and showing maturity in
judgments (Facione, 1990; Miller & Babcock, 1996; Scheffer & Rubenfeld, 2000). These
have also been described as critical thinking indicators which also includes selfawareness, genuineness, and being self-disciplined (Alfaro-LeFevre, 2004). See What is
Critical Thinking? for further discussion.
Why are “habits of the mind” so important to critical thinking?
Our traits and dispositions are necessary to motivate us to engage in critical thinking and
they provide the scaffolding or underpinnings to support this type and level of thinking.
Without this firm foundation or motivation, our critical thinking skills can wax and wane
over time and not be readily available when needed. Although we can separate our traits
from cognitive skills, they are truly an essential component of our critical thinking that
operates in tandem with (co-occurs) with these skills.
How can we assess our dispositions or habits of the mind?
A person with a strong disposition toward critical thinking, according to Dr. Peter
Facione (1996) might tend to agree with statements like: "Figuring out what people
really mean by what they say is important to me" or "Making intelligent decisions is
more important than winning arguments". Someone with a weak disposition might agree
with statements like: "I hate when teachers discuss problems instead of just giving the
answers" or "No matter how complex the problem, you can bet there will be a simple
solution." The California Critical Thinking Disposition Inventory may be used to assess
different traits or dispositions and overall disposition (see Measurement and Evaluation
section). Critical Thinking Indicators ™ (CTIs)™ may be used to self-evaluate these
behaviors (www.AlfaroTeachSmart.com).
How do we develop and establish these habits?
We learn habits of the mind through past experiences in dealing with complex problems
or critical events, through the teaching or modeling of others, and through self awareness
and reflections on our thinking and actions. In order to establish patterns of dispositions,
we must continuously practice these behaviors and use self-evaluation and monitoring to
improve them. We must seek teachers, mentors, and resources to guide us in this
process. We must be willing to change our attitudes and "try on" new behaviors and "try
out" different responses.
How do we promote these habits in ourselves and others?
We can listen to others fully while suspending judgment. We can practice empathy. We
can expect beliefs and values to be clearly related to our practice. We can make sure that
clinical reasoning is supported with evidence for making judgments and taking actions.
We can value and appreciate both habits in ourselves and those of others that we work
with in nursing education and practice.
References
Alfaro-LeFevre, R. (2004). Critical thinking and clinical judgment: A practical approach.
St. Louis, MO: Saunders.
American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language (4th ed.). (2000). Boston:
Houghton-Mifflin. Retrived May 25, 2004 from
http://education.yahoo.com/reference/dictionary
Facione, P.A. (1990). Critical thinking: A statement of expert consensus for purposes of
educational assessment and instruct. Executive summary: "The Delphi Report". Millbrae,
CA: The California Academic Press.
Facione, P. A. (1996). Critical thinking: What it is and why it counts--A resource paper.
Millbrae, CA: The California Academic Press.
Miller, M.A., & Babcock, D.E. (1996). Critical thinking applied to nursing. St. Louis,
MO: Mosby.
Scheffer, B.K., & Rubenfeld, M.G. (2000). A consensus statement on critical thinking in
nursing. Journal of Nursing Education, 39(8), 352-359.